OTTAWA — The majority of Canadians don’t seem too bothered by companies tracking their digital footprint to come up with targeted advertising, new research has found.

Being recorded on closed-circuit television cameras (CCTV) or being body-scanned at airport security also meet with little more than a shrug, according to a report on online engagement and consumer attitudes toward privacy.

The report, commissioned by Advertising Standards Canada, is based on a poll of 1,000 Canadians and six focus groups held across the country.

The results, compiled by research firm McCann Truth Central, are good news for companies as they forge ahead with what’s known as behavioural marketing. The practice involves tracking the online activities of consumers over time so advertisers can target ads to people’s apparent interests.

The types of information that can be collected include Internet Protocol addresses, pages visits, length of time spent on pages, advertisements viewed, articles read and purchases made.

The poll found that 73 per cent of those asked said they were aware of companies tracking websites they visit and using this data to approximate consumer preferences for marketing.

“The most plugged-in consumers realize that this is a part of the infrastructure of the Internet,” states the report, titled The Truth About Privacy.

The majority of those asked (53 per cent) also said they are willing to share location data, such as check-ins and most frequented locations, to obtain a benefit. An even great number — 79 per cent — are willing to share their shopping data, including where they shop and the types of things they tend to buy.

The survey says these findings are consistent with a “savvy shopper” profile.

The survey gave respondents a list of potential privacy concerns and asked how much each would bother them.

Being recorded on CCTV (closed-circuit) cameras, being body-scanned by airport security and having companies track the websites you visit fell into the “least bothered” or a “part of life these days” category.

“Interestingly, issues like CCTV cameras and interest-based advertising, when viewed in context, are seen less as privacy violations and more as a ‘normal’ part of life these days,” states the report.

That doesn’t mean Canadian consumers are dismissive of privacy as an issue that requires serious thought, the survey found. When asked the extent to which these things worry you personally, 72 per cent said they worry about the erosion of personal privacy (topped only by the 75 per cent who, when asked, worried about a further global financial crisis).

Jennifer Stoddart, Canada’s privacy commissioner, released guidelines last year for companies to follow if they’re engaged in online behavioural advertisement. Stoddart acknowledged “some people like seeing ads tailored to their particular interest,” while others “find this practice downright creepy.” She said she was concerned that, for the most part, online behavioural advertising was happening invisibly, and laid out conditions under which opt-out consent could be used.

The survey found that Canadians draw the line at sharing financial data with a business online in order to obtain a benefit. Only 17 per cent said they would trade bank and credit card details. Canadians are similarly reserved when it comes to medical data, with just 27 per cent willing to share this data.

“When it comes to something like online behavioural advertising, people tend to show a degree of awareness that this is happening, and they understand that it doesn’t affect their finances or their reputation,” David Tucker, co-author of the report, said in an interview.

“For the most part, it’s a part of life. I think the important thing with that is people say, ‘When I know about it, when I’m given the choice to opt out, it’s not something that certainly is on the scale of fear of what might happen to my finances or fear of what might happen to my reputation.’”

The results of the privacy poll, conducted online earlier this fall, are considered accurate to within 3.1 per cent, 19 times out of 20.

I've been a Senior Writer at Postmedia News (formerly Canwest News Service) since 2003. I used to cover education, and now I report on consumer affairs (since 2008). I'm based in Ottawa, but I've lived... read more in Victoria, Halifax, Montreal and Toronto (my hometown) for school and work. I didn't plan to become a journalist, but after grad school (to study history), I thought I might want to teach, so went to teacher's college. It was a dreary experience, so I got involved at the campus student paper to get through the school year. I came out of that experience with a third university degree and a job paying less than $10,000 as news editor of The Varsity at the University of Toronto. That was in 1997. I've been writing for a living ever since.View author's profile